European Conquests By the late 1400s Spanish explorers arrived in the Americas.
In 1519 a Spanish army led by Cortez landed in Mexico in search of gold and riches.
With 600 soldiers he conquered the Aztecs in 2 years with superior weapons and horses. Diseases such as small pox and measles also killed the native Americans.
Another Spaniard, Francisco Pizarro, took a small group of 180 soldiers to Peru in 1532 in search of Inca gold.
The Spanish crushed the Inca and captured the ruler, Atahualpa, ransomed him and eventually killed him.
Colonial Latin America Spain became an empire with the wealth taken from the Americas.
This led to other European countries to also want wealth and resources and they colonized other parts of the Americas. – Portuguese – Brazil – France, Britain & the Netherlands took parts of North & South America and the Caribbean.
European Rule European countries set up colonial governments.
Spread Christianity
Used natives to produce cash crops (exports: cotton, tobacco, sugar)
Many native Americans died because of disease and this led to Africans and Indians being enslaved and brought to work in the Americas.
Independence By the late 1700s native Americans wanted independence from the European rulers. Haiti was the first to revolt successfully against France in 1804.
In 1817 Jose de San Martin led forces to control Argentina, Chile and finally Peru.
In 1819 Simon Bolivar led the fight against Spain for present day Venezuela, Columbia, Ecuador and Bolivia.
Mexico gained independence in 1821.
Spanish and Portuguese rule ended in the 1820s but conflicts over religion, territory and wealth let to decades of unrest, instability and military rule. Political & Economic Challenges
Exporting Products Today Latin America exports: – Bananas, sugar, coffee, copper and oil.
Latin America Today Today almost all nations in Latin America are democratic. (Except Cuba).
The governments are facing many challenges including: – Crime – Corruption, – Population growth – Rich and poor gap – Illegal drug producing